Snow, snow and more snow in the forecast for the Tri-state area! Another foot in fact! My wish of building an igloo in Central Park this weekend just might come true at this rate :)

Living in the NW my whole life I’m very accustomed to the rain, but this snow thing is something to get used to. I was trying to decide which I preferred, but haven’t quite made my mind up yet. Not having to drive in the snow here definitely makes a big difference. Walking around in the city starts to become a little difficult though especially once the snow turns to slush.. aka huge slush puddles around the crosswalks. Rainboots or waterproof boots are really the only way to go around here.

Something else that has been funny to me while getting used to the NY winter weather is the words used to describe it. In Washington and Oregon, I poked fun at the fact we had so many words to describe the same thing, rain. Drizzle, showers, downpour, sprinkle, mist, dew, stream, and just old fashioned rain. The best part? We know the difference when the weather man says there will be showers followed by drizzle and then back to showers.

Now that the rain isn’t a main part of the weekly forecast I’ve started a whole new world of NY winter vocab words to describe the weather. Snowflakes, flurries, sleet, freezing rain, blizzard, frigid temperatures, snow showers, and freezing fog. My two favorites though? Ice pellets, and wintery mix. Today, 100% chance of ice pellets. Back where I’m from I’m pretty sure we call that hail.. After I left the gym and I was walking home though I’m pretty sure it started “ice pelleting.” Is there a difference from hail? I’m not entirely sure, but it did seem a little different. Then we have wintery mix.. I’m not really sure what that completely entails either, but I’m going to go ahead and say I’m not really a fan. Wet, cold snow mixed with something on top of icy conditions and wind. When they say wintery mix, run for the hills!

It’s been an interesting transition in climates, but I’m trying to take it all in, new words and all! I’ll keep you posted on that igloo ;)